Hysterectomy is the second most frequently performed major surgical procedure in the United States. One of the most important aspects of hysterectomy is the impact it has on the women's communication and relationship with her regular sexual partner; yet, no systematic research has been conducted concerning these aspects of the effects of hysterectomy on women. The purposes of this research are (1) to describe the level of communication and (2) quality of the relationship in couples when the women has a hysterectomy, and (3) to determine the association between communication and relationships in these couples. An exploratory correlational study will be conducted. The sample will consist of 50 English-speaking couples between the ages of 18 and 60 who described themselves as being in a partnered relationship and who both consent to participate. The primary criterion for sample selection is that the women will have undergone a hysterectomy and to be hospitalized. Data will be collected separately from the women and her partner, but each will complete a short, semistructured, audiotaperecorded interview and three standardized questionnaires--the Primary Communication Inventory, the Dyadic Adjustment Scale, and the Relationship Inventory. Demographic data will also be obtained. Female interviewers will interview the women, and a male research assistant will interview the men. Data analysis will consist of Pearson product moment correlations between results of the instruments for the women alone, and for the women and their partners as a couple. Descriptive statistics will be used to describe the sample. Qualitative analysis of the interview data, using constant comparative method, will be conducted; independent analyses will be conducted for the women and their partners. The Chi square test for associations between demographic, communication, and relationship variables, as well as for any other categories that are developed from the data. The results of this study will provide empirical data from which nursing interventions can be designed to help couples communicate more effectively and decrease the relationship problems that may result.